Aidan O'Brien won the eighth Betfred 1000 Guineas of his career as the smooth-travelling True Love delivered at 5/1 under Wayne Lordan.
The daughter of No Nay Never was having her second visit to Newmarket having landed last year's Cheveley Park Stakes over six furlongs and although a trip to Del Mar for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (5f) didn't quite go to plan, True Love had made a winning reappearance over seven furlongs at Leopardstown last month.
That teed her up nicely for a shot at Classic glory and Lordan always cut a confident figure on the sizeable three-year-old, moving powerfully in the nearside group before being delivered with her challenge alongside eventual third Venetian Lace (33/1).
In the far side group, Evolutionist (16/1) was prominent throughout and stuck to her task doggedly under Shane Foley, ultimately holding on for second but unable to live with the dominant winner who had a length and three-quarters to spare at the line.
The Prettiest Star (16/1) finished off well to take fourth for Ed Walker, Charlie Appleby's Abashiri (8/1) was fifth, while True Love's stablemate and 9/5 favourite Precise could only finish seventh in the hands of Ryan Moore.
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'Nowhere to hide out there'
O’Brien said: “I was very happy with both fillies. Precise had a very easy bit of work because she had a temperature two months ago. There was always going to be a danger that might catch her a little bit so she obviously got a little bit tired.
"The race that this filly won last time nearly all of our 1000 Guineas winners had won that race on the way to here. Obviously there was the few of them like Love and that who didn’t have a run, but any of them that had run that was the race they won then came here. You couldn’t be sure she was going to get a mile as she was a Queen Mary winner. It is very unusual for a Queen Mary winner to get a mile. Wayne gave her a beautiful ride.
“I ran her in the wrong race in America as I didn’t want to run her against Precise over the mile. I went to the sprint race, and it wasn’t fair to her as she got drawn very badly. When she was able to win over seven furlongs at Leopardstown where she got no cover there was always a chance she could get it (the Guineas trip). She is an amazing big powerful filly.
“The lads through the winter thought she might get the mile as she is very relaxed in all her work. She had always been relaxed in her work so there was always a chance that she would get it. Usually those horses that are sprinting bred you can stretch them too far, but Wayne was very patient on her today. When she won over seven furlongs get no cover on soft ground there was always a chance she could get a mile. This place, more than any track in the world, is very unforgiving. There is nowhere to hide out there. It is very open and the pace is usually on. It is hard for them to go slow as they just go at it automatically in those races so I couldn’t be happier really.
“She would have no bother going back in distance, but I would imagine she would stay at a mile now for the fillies' races. She would have the Irish 1000 Guineas and the Coronation Stakes on her agenda now. You wouldn’t go any further than a mile.
“She is very classy. Wayne said he was doing a half speed down past the two furlong pole on her. All he wanted to do was wait and I thought he was exceptional on her. He was very cool."
'She went to the line well'
Lordan said: “The trip was the question as she showed so much pace last year. She went to Leopardstown and got to the line well over seven furlongs on a stiff track with ease in the ground.
“On the dam’s side it suggested she would stay, and you are only going by the sire’s side that she might not stay. Her homework suggested that she relaxes so well that she would get it.
“She is a big powerful filly. You could see in the ring she is quite tall, but she has the strength to go with it. I was lucky that she won the Cheveley Park here last year. She jumped and relaxed beautifully and went through the race very comfortably. When I asked her to go forward she went to the line well.
“You are never sure until you past the winner line that you have it, but when I passed the two furlong pole I was still travelling pretty well. Everything worked out perfectly today.
“Thankfully it is a lucky race for me, but for me, when I’m in the position I am I get to ride nice horses and when you have that you have always got a chance of winning nice races.”
Return to France for runner-up
Burke said of Evolutionist: “She is all heart. Shane (Foley) said the ground was as quick as she would want it. He said he was going a nice gallop, but that he couldn’t go any quicker on that ground. He didn’t want to put the gun to her head early. He just wanted to let her get into a nice rhythm. She finished over well and I thought a furlong out she was going to do it.
"She will stay further and I would say she will go straight to the Prix de Diane now. I think the Irish 1000 Guineas will come too soon for her as she had a hard race there. She had a hard race there. She is a very good filly that is progressive and hopefully a step up in trip will find some more improvement.
"We went to France just to test the water for a prep run, and she performed really well there, and I think a mile and a quarter will be spot on for her.
“Clifford (Lee) didn’t think Venetian Sun stayed. She hit the gate strong, but she had no cover and the draw didn’t help. At two out I thought she was getting on to the tail of Evolutionist but she just petered out in the end. We will go back to the book and I would say she would end up going back to the Commonwealth Cup.
“The only race I could think of before that is the Sandy Lane. It is the end of May, and she is a tough filly, so that might be a possibility.”
Johnston said of third home Venetian Lace: “As I said here a couple of weeks ago I was coming here as an Oaks trial and she couldn’t run a much better one than that.
“She will definitely stay 10 furlongs, whether she will stay 12 or not I don’t know, but on pedigree she should and she will go straight there. She ended up a little bit marooned on her own and maybe if she had some company with the first and second she might have got back up for second.
“We came here for that racecourse gallop to try and learn what we are going to do this year and we left thinking we probably had more of an Oaks filly than a Guineas filly, so to finish third in a 1000 Guineas is brilliant.
“The ground was too quick for Timeforshowcasing. She is a big filly that is very upright. She will go to the German 1000 Guineas and that will really suit her.”
Timeform view
by David Cleary
Aidan O'Brien gained a first win in either Newmarket Classic since Mother Earth in 2021 when another stable second string True Love came out on top in the Betfred 1000 Guineas. True Love had some of the best form coming into the race, not far off that of her stable's first string Precise, both having won at Group 1 level as a two-year-old. And with neither Precise nor the Morny winner Venetian Sun at their best, True Love probably didn't have to improve much to add a Classic to her resume.
As in the 2000 Guineas the previous day, the field split essentially into two groups. The pace was just an even one, and the leaders in the respective groups, Evolutionist and Venetian Lace, saw the race out well enough to hold on to second and third. True Love travelled smoothly in touch in the near-side group before delivering her challenge in the last quarter-mile. She hadn't seemed sure to stay a mile beforehand, but she relaxes well in her races and had no problem with the extra furlong.
Entries in the Pretty Polly and Commonwealth Cup suggests some uncertainty on the part of connections over which path she might take, but the Irish Guineas and the Coronation Stakes looks a very obvious route for True Love.
Of those behind her today, Precise may be the most likely to pose a threat to her, should they meet again. Precise looked as if the run would bring her on and performed accordingly, her forward move from the off the pace a promising one before it petered out in the final furlong.
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